Sesame Street crossed with Rent. This is how Avenue Q is described in its official press release. However, seeing the show live last March 10 on its special press preview would make one think that description is not enough to cover what the show really is.

True, for those who grew up with Sesame Street and related to the many issues the main characters in Rent faced, the description is apt... but not really enough. It seems like the genius songwriting team of Jeff Marx and Robert Lopez took the good elements of TV shows like Friends, (friends iving in close proximity have formed special bonds) and Ally McBeal (the idealist who refuses to give into life’s temporary joys, instead seeks out joys which are meaningful and lasting). Ask anyone who have seen the show on its previous runs and they may say differently. As a matter of fact, when the show debuted on Broadway in August 2003, Ben Brantley, one of New York’s premiere theater critics, likened the show to the musical West Side Story. A bit of a stretch, many would say, but pretty much on the mark when you really think about it—minus the tragic ending of course.